Laurence Levain was a culinary superstar: The high-profile owner and chef of Chez Laurence, an internationally renowned restaurant in Washington, D.C., his specialty was the world-famous Les Nouilles en Quilt Multicolore, an incomparably lush pasta dish to die for. So when Levain collapses in his clogs the night before CityTastes, a star-studded black-tie benefit dinner, all bets are on his soaring cholesterol level.

But one person has her doubts: Chas Wheatley, the Washington Examiner's saber-penned restaurant critic, seems to think that it was more than just excessive amounts of cholesterol that killed the culinary genius. Wheatley, who still carries a torch for Levain after an affair years before and is convinced that someone wanted him to go the the grave with all his secrets, uses all her investigative resources to find the culprit.

Enlisting the help of detective/gourmand Homer Jones (who spends more time at the table than on the trail of the killer), her daughter, Lily - whose connections to the food world are of a more intimate variety - and Dave Zeeger, the Examiner's star investigative reporter and Chas's partner in the bedroom as well as the newsroom, she soon finds herself in more hot water than she bargained for.